Dreams are what we make them
We are the music-makers,
We are the dreamers of dreams
- Arthur O’ Shaugnessy
November 1978. It was a bright, sunny afternoon. The wind rustled through the bare branches of the willows as it raked up a thin mist of dust across the Changlingmethang. For a group of us from Darjeeling and Kalimpong schools, we had just finished a short game of basketball with His Majesty the King. Soon we are in his palace; all in pants and shirts, trying to balance teacups in saucers and, at the same time, hold on to pieces of cakes and other delicacies. In his frugal palace, His Majesty, from his simple dais viewed indulgently the assorted group of students sitting in front of him. He joked and queried about activities and event in the schools that year. In bits and pieces he talked to us about the country’s development progress and future plans. One of remarkable comments he made was, “Ultimately, all of you will have to take responsibility for this country. Therefore, it is important that you continue to educate yourself and prepare assiduously for the tasks that lie ahead of you.” Only when the events unfolded in the National Assembly of 1998 did I recall the prophetic words of His Majesty uttered some twenty years ago.
At that time no one could have even dreamt of such a possibility: even when the reality of it dawned upon us, it was unimaginable for us to think that without our beloved King at the helm of affairs, the country could move forward. But he was not only a dreamer, but also the maker of dreams. Political change was no mere after thought; it was not a result of a momentary impulse. It was foreseen and planned meticulously over the decades so that we were ready for it when the time finally came. But are we ready?
Of course, we are. Our successive Kings built a country that is peaceful and prosperous. It is like a field in which the crop is how we prepare the field for future crops is our challenge. It is not only the Council of Ministers and the National Assembly that must bear this weighty burden: all of us have a share in that responsibility.
As the new millennium dawns, there is so much that we are proud of. Though a late starter on the journey to modernization, we are now very much in step with the beat of the drums of the modern world. With a combination of sheer geographic luck, the wise and benevolent leadership of our kings, we enjoy peace, prosperity and opportunities unparalleled. Compared to countries battered with natural calamities, manmade disasters and civil strife, life in Bhutan is too good to be true. But that is what stuff dreams are made of and we are the makers of these dreams.
The next century promises to be more prosperous. But it will also be more volatile. It is now almost a cliché to say that the information revolution and the Internet would change our lives; it has done so already. Thus poised on the threshold of the new millennium, we need to examine the values that will define us. For these ideals will be the pillars on which the citadel of our future will rest.
On the giant panorama of our country’s past and the future, there is a rich tapestry. And the first thread of that tapestry is national unity. In this strife-torn world, it is easy to be divisive. Even within the shangrila of Bhutan, absolute peace is less certain. Dark forces of dissent rumble in the background of tranquility. Such events, unfortunate as they are, do-exist. And for a variety of reasons, the most important being, of course, greedy ambition. Regional and separatist sentiments are destructive to any nation. It is even more so for a small country like ours: we are too fragile. Our King always stressed on national unity. But I fear that all too often, knowingly or unwittingly, we fuel regional sentiments. If all of us at all stations of life, sincerely put aside our regional sentiments, our petty concerns for our little kingdoms and honestly pitch in together for one nation, then we have nothing to fear. One nation, one people till now has remained a solid reality. Let’s try and preserve that even into the next millennium.
Preserving national unity also requires frugal management of our resources. Once when I presented a report, clasped in a blue plastic folder, to H.E., the late Lyonpo Tobgyel, he looked at it over his glasses balanced on the rip of his nose, and slowly and carefully removed the paper from out of the folder. As he returned the folder to me he said, Next time, when you bring papers to me, bring it on a simple file board. All these cost money and the government has to bear the cost of it. We must try not being lavish. Perhaps, he too was a dreamer. But such dreams must arise from love and concern for the motherland. How many of us really think that every little gesture adds up to something significant? It is not really the amount that is important, it is the concern and the sense of husbandry that is. For a landlocked and relatively underdeveloped country like ours, resources are not that plenty. Sometimes, we tend to be more generous than warranted by the occasion because we think that it is the government’s and not ours. But then all of us form part of that we call the government.
However, frugality and good intentions can easily be subverted by the lack of integrity. When I went to Sarpang in 1989 as the Deputy Director for Malaria Control Program, there was an audit memo stating that some fans were installed in the private residence of the them Director General, Dasho Yonten. In the early sixties, having no adequate government premise in Sarpang, his private house was rented for the program. The fans were installed then. Having no choice other than to have it removed, I did just that. Later someone more adept at dealing with such matters told me that it was a foolish thing that I had done. I should have adjusted somehow and not removed it just like that, he chided. Fearfully, I reported the matter to my DG in Thimphu. With his gentle gaze and shy smile, he said, You have done the right thing. There is nothing for you to worry. It is easy to adjust such matters on paper, but it takes character not to allow adjustment of one’s probity.
I heard Lyonpo Zimba remark that the only way in which Bhutan can survive in the future is through good will and competence. Bhutanese culture and tradition is a varied tableau of hospitality, goodwill and generosity. We must uphold that tradition. But goodwill is not he same as squandering; it is an intelligent mix of good intentions with the correct appreciation of the event’s significance. Good will is essential to nurture, but wisdom requires a sense of proportion. The judicious management of government resources is an essential to a country’s survival as the strong bulwarks of its defense fortifications.
I am a dreamer. And my dream, my motto is what a Jesuit Father in scribed in a book, presented as a farewell gift when I left school, Dear Pem, Mediocrity is not enough. To be competitive in tomorrow’s world, skill and competence must hold center-stage. There is no compromising on quality and competence, whatever field that may be in. nepotism and cronyism are deadly bedfellows. And anyone who promotes them sows the seed of discontent and undermines that principle. In a seemingly cruel world, kindness is like a desert flower. In a fast evolving universe, preserving the old ways of life is necessary for the mornings of our cultural roots. But quality cannot be shortchanged, that is if we are really serious about staying abreast with changes in a staying abreast with changes in a fickle world. Progress demands change and in change, there are always trade-ofs. The next century will be far more competitive than ever. The merchandise of the future society will be knowledge, and there will be no room for ignorance if we wish to stay ahead. Basking in the sunshine under the benevolence and the hard work of our Kings, Bhutanese today had inherited a county where hard work is sometimes almost superfluous. We are quite happy to leave everything to the government. It is only adversity that sharpens an individual’s instincts for survival. To some extent, the last one-century of peace and prosperity and kidu has softened our spines and blunted our competitive edge. To not only survive, but also to succeed in the next millennium, we must hone our competitive edge so that the pillars of our progress are capability and integrity and not archaic sentimentality and ineptness.
Bhutanese, to some extent, seem too inordinately caught up with externalities. Lines of vehicle are long and the same, be it at a funeral procession or the motorcade following a promoted dignitary. Feasting equal, if not exceed, Roman Holidays. So what if government cars are used to ferry the guests or to bring the food, or civil servants stop work to go and drink champagne. Fun, pomp and extravagance are sometimes goods for the spirit. But again, perhaps, there is some room for moderation. We seem too concerned about our outer looks rather than our inter strength. It is strange though. But I’m told that Japanese would leave his house in a suit and with a tie, but leave these at his doorstep so that he can change into a kimono at home. We wear out gho and kira as we go outside, but discard them immediately for pants and shirts within the sanctity of our homes. I think it is an expression of some void in our souls. Maybe.
What then, someone may ask, is quintessentially Bhutanese? I would say that there are two-our strong Buddhist tradition and our King.
We proudly proclaim, and rightly so, that Bhutan is now the last bastion of Mahayana Buddhism. Our country is dotted with beautiful stupas, fine temples and imposing and ornate dzongs. And the sound of fluttering prayer flags and the chanting of prayers enrich the very air that we breathe in. but even religion too must evolve as we march on the road to the future. With an ever-increasing population of the modern educated masses, the group of people that believe without question that Guru Rinpoche flew from Tibet to Taktsang on a tiger is rapidly dwindling. Esoteric rituals and mysterious practices become difficult to be understood by a mind rained to be perspicacious. Our religious institutions cannot continue to remain in the dim cloisters of temples. Our religious teachings must not be mere blessings and recitations of memorized texts. Surely there is now emerging a generation that find the old manner of our religion hard to comprehend, and yet at the same time hadn’t found an alternative to it. It is a natural yearning in a human being to believe in something. But that must also give them meaning. And there is no other fertile ground than an empty soul to breed other dogmas, be it Allah’s or Jesus’.
And finally, to me, my King is the quintessential symbol of all that is Bhutan. Sagacity combined with industry and ability tempered with benevolence, if there is a Socratic philosopher king in today’s world, it is ours He is the skein that weaves the fabric of Bhutan’s past, present and the future. And if all of us heed his call for unity, honesty, simplicity, and industry, I do not see why the next millennium cannot be as rewarding as it has been till now. We can and we must share his dreams. Only then can we realize our dream to make this country a paradise on earth.
By: Dr. Pem Namgyal, Thimphu, 2000. Source: KUENSEL